In Light of the Embassy Attacks Don’t Blame Free Speech

With the embassy attacks happening across the Middle East there is no doubt that the State Department is on edge. They lost four of their own this week when the U.S. Consulate in Benghazi, Libya was attacked. Ambassador Chris Stevens, Glen Doherty, Sean Smith and Tyrone S. Woods are patriots and died in the service of their country. We own their families a debt of gratitude. There is a narrative that must stop however. We can not allow the blaming of the embassy attacks on the trailer of the Innocence of Muslims to continue.

I’ve watched the trailer. It’s pretty outrageous, and I can certainly understand why Muslims are offended. However in the United States unlike most countries in the Middle East we have the protection of free speech. It is, along with freedom of religion – something that is also denied by most Muslim countries, our first and fundamental right. Because of this right of free speech as a Christian I am offended every day by numerous advertisements, videos, music, etc. I could, if I allow myself, to be in constant outrage mode by how decadent our culture has become. This video should not be allowed to be used as an excuse for the embassy attacks in general and the attack on the Benghazi consulate attack specifically.

Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in her remarks today at Andrews Air Force Base during the transfer of remains ceremony for the four slain in Libya said:

This has been a difficult week for the State Department and for our country. We’ve seen the heavy assault on our post in Benghazi that took the lives of those brave men. We’ve seen rage and violence directed at American embassies over an awful Internet video that we had nothing to do with.

It is hard for the American people to make sense of that because it is senseless and it is totally unacceptable. The people of Egypt, Libya, Yemen and Tunisia did not trade the tyranny of a dictator for the tyranny of a mob. Reasonable people and responsible leaders in these countries need to do everything they can to restore security and hold accountable those behind these violent acts.

In fact, what is “disgusting and reprehensible” is that there are people in the world who think they are justified in attacking and killing people because someone hurt their feelings or offended their sensibilities. The US government should not act as a validator or enabler of this upside down worldview, which is exactly what the Obama administration has done repeatedly as they have responded to these abhorrent attacks against the United States.

I have defended the Obama administration against the complaints from the right that they have run an “apology tour” in the Middle East because I believe the US should admit when we make mistakes, such as the accidental burning of Korans. But what we shouldn’t do is affirm the wrongheaded view that people should be protected from the free speech of others.

Worse, our leaders shouldn’t let our enemies know that when they kill our people and attack our embassies that the US Government will act like a battered wife making excuses for her psychotic husband. Wake up: we weren’t attacked because of a movie made by an American. We were attacked because there are crazy religious fanatics who hate the United States. We didn’t ask for it.

Egypt’s President Morsi reportedly asked Obama “to put an end to such behavior”—presumably freedom, constitutional rights and the like — as it led to the making of, in his eyes, the offensive movie.

Like I mentioned before I’m offended by what I see in culture every day. Yet what you don’t see are Christians rioting, issuing fatwas, burning down buildings, and killing people over what offends us. You don’t see that out of any religion except for the “religion of peace.” Let’s stop blaming free speech and get to the root of the problem – the inherent violence within Islam and to call it out for what it is.

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About Shane Vander Hart

Shane Vander Hart is the founder and editor-in-chief of Caffeinated Thoughts. He is also the President of 4:15 Communications, LLC, a social media & communications consulting/management firm. Prior to this Shane spent 20 years in youth ministry serving in church, parachurch, and school settings. He has also served as an interim pastor and is a sought after speaker and pulpit fill-in. Shane has been married to his wife Cheryl since 1993 and they have three kids. Shane and his family reside near Des Moines, IA. You can connect with Shane on Facebook or follow him on Twitter and Google +.

Comments

I’m a Catholic. But I’m not stupid about my religion’s history. Christians have killed more people over the last 2000 years than any other religion. Probably shouldn’t throw stones in our glass house Mr. Vander Hart.

If you were that informed about history you’d know that most of those killings had more to do with political power than the cause of Christ. I’m not disavowing what was done in the past, but do you see Christians burning stuff down today. Let’s focus on the present.

“I’m a Catholic. But I’m not stupid about my religion’s history.” I won’t call you stupid since I don’t know you but I have no problem calling you misinformed.
“Christians have killed more people over the last 2000 years than any other religion.” Really? Would you mind providing some evidence of that?

“Probably shouldn’t throw stones in our glass house Mr. Vander Hart.” Yeah, you’re right. Insisting that it is not ok to blow things up and kill innocent people is hypocritical.

Well, our War Between The States, WW!,WW2 did their share. However, no where in the Bible, at least that I could find, teaches “conquer by the sword”, rule by fear and all non believers are to murdered if they refuse to submit to muslims. The Christians I know, do not believe there is honor in killing a daughter, wife, mother or other female family member that has been raped to protect their (male) honor. As a Catholic, I will throw as many stones I can gather at muslims places. This would be in honor of MY family who have served in Iraq, Afghanistan and the Ambassador of Libya who didn’t have the Marines to protect him and because of the murdered personnel in Afghanistan by an Afghan is uniform. If you believe our allies are stealing uniforms to murder our people, you need help. And if you believe these riots all over the world were inspired by a stupid video, you need even more help. Perhaps if Obama had daily Intel briefings instead of reading a one pape report, it might help. I doubt Obama would even understand Intel briefings. All the man has done for the past two decades has been campaigning. And guards without ammunition? And still pay the murderers with taxpayer money? My honor is not demanding war. My common sense tells me to pull the Navy back to our shores, the Army to the homeland to protect us and most of all, close the pocketbook.

True Muslims have murdered hundreds of millions of people. 150,000,000 sub-Saharan Africans as they were marched over the Sahara without water to be sold as slaves. Muslims have wiped out entire peoples. In 1915 they murdered millions of Armenians; 1942-1945 Muslims murdered 700,000 Serbian Christians in Yugoslavia being allied with the Nazis; between 700 AD and the present, Muslims have decimated vast areas of Eastern Europe and Africa. Over 1,500,000 girls and boys have been taken in raids against the European coast from Greece to Norway over the last 1200 years.

No one in the history of the world has murdered more people than Muslims in the name of Allah. They have vowed to murder the rest of us.

Heard today that there are the clean shaved, suit wearing muslims such as the Muslims Brotherhood and another group, wearing full beards, all the trappings of radicals living with Shari law but missed the name. All I caught was that it seem to begin with a “S”. So, knowledgeable one, do you now?

Oh really, no “inherent violence”? Let’s consider this statement in light of a few verses from the Koran that deal with unbelievers:

“Believers, make war on the infidels who dwell around you. Deal firmly with them.” Quran 9:123″Garments of fire have been prepared for the unbelievers. Scalding water shall be poured upon their heads, melting their skins and that which is in their bellies. They shall be lashed with rods of iron. Whenever, in their anguish, they try to escape from Hell, back they shall be dragged, and will be told: “Taste the torment of the Conflagration!” “Quran 22:19-20″When the sacred months are over slay the idolaters wherever you find them. Arrest them, besiege them, and lie in ambush everywhere for them.”Quran 9:5Or, how about the testimony of one, of many of his more well know mouthpieces … And there is plenty more where that came from. [Muhammad] said, “…fight everyone in the way of God and kill those who disbelieve in God…” Ibn Ishaq, The Life of Muhammed, page 672Maybe the “rightwing Islamaphobe” can help the “got my head in the sand, happy to live in denial” individual a lesson in reality. Time to wake-up. Pretty soon you won’t even have a country in which you can freely embrace your liberalism.

“Sharia [Islamic law] is totally incompatible with the U.S. Constitution and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights of 1948. Women are inferior under Islamic law—their testimony in a court of law is worth half that of a man; their movement is strictly restricted; they cannot marry non-Muslims. Non-Muslims living in Muslim countries also have inferior status under Islamic law; they may not testify against a Muslim. In Saudi Arabia, following a tradition of Muhammad, who said that “two religions cannot exist in the country of Arabia,” non-Muslims are forbidden to practice their religion, build houses of worship, possess religious texts, etc. Non-believers or atheists in Muslim countries do not have “the right to life”; all the major law schools, whether Sunni or Shia, agree that they are to be killed. (Muslim doctors of law generally divide sins into great sins and little sins. Of the 17 great sins, unbelief is the greatest, more heinous than murder, theft, adultery, etc.) Slavery is recognized as legitimate in the Koran. Muslim men are allowed to cohabit with any of their female slaves, and they are allowed to take possession even of married female slaves. One does not have the right to change one’s religion if one is born into a Muslim family; here is how the great commentator Baydawi sees the matter: “Whosoever turns back from his belief, openly or secretly, take him and kill him wheresoever you find him, like any other infidel. Separate yourself from him altogether. Do not accept intercession in his regard.” And here are the punishments in store for transgressors against the Holy Law: amputation, flogging, crucifixion, and stoning to death.”
Ibn Warraq, “The Two Faces of Feisal Rauf”

I find it curious that Obama and Hillary stated that they found the content of the video in question “disgusting and reprehensible” and and insult to “a great religion”. Yet, they did not use any language as strong when condemning the murderous rampage, worldwide of peace loving Muslims. The video depicts Mohammed as a murderous, womanizing pedophile. While I do not think it is right to mock anyone’s religious beliefs, let’s just go to the source, The Koran, and see what it has to say on these topics. I might also point out that the maker of the the film is a Coptic Christian, and Coptics are being slaughtered, raped and sold into slavery every day in Egypt under The Muslim Brotherhood’s rule, but I don’t hear Obama or Hillary speaking out about that. So, I can’t blame the maker of the film for his somewhat negative view of Islam. All we ever hear Muslims say is the Islam means “peace”. That is incorrect. It means “submission”; and the instructions from Mohammed in the Koran is to make all infidels “submit” to Islam, or be beheaded. Verse 4:84: “So engage in war for the sake of Allah……and provoke the believers”. 4:89: “So do not take any of them (infidels, unbelievers) for friends until they emigrate for the sake of Allah. So if they turn away (do not convert) seize them AND KILL THEM wherever you find them.” 7:12: “I will cast terror into the hearts of infidels. So chop off their necks and chop off every finger from them. This is because they have opposed Allah and his Messenger”.8:39:
“And engage in war with the infidels so that there will not be sedition and the religion will be completely to Allah”. O you Prophet, provoke the believers to engage in war. It was not for a Prophet to take captives until he makes a great slaughter in the land”. 8:73: “And those who believed and EMIGRATED and performed jihad for Allah, those are the true believers, and they will receive forgiveness and generous provisions.” The Koran calls Christians “polytheists” because they think we believe in three separate Gods. 9:5: “So kill the polytheists wherever you find them them and beseige them and them as captives and lay in wait for them with every kind of ambush.” 9:33: He is who sent his messenger with the guidance and the true religion so that he may make it prevail over every other religion even if the polytheists (Christians) hate it.9:41: “March forth lightly or heavily and perform jihad with your money and your lives for the sake of Allah, and be harsh with them (infidels). Mohammed is bragging about terrorizing, enslaving and killing Jews and Christians, and stealing their property in 33:26: “And he brought down the people of the Book (Christians are people of the Book) and cast terror in their hearts. A group of them you are killing and a group of them taking captive. And he made you inherit their homes and their money and a land you had never set foot on. And Allah was mighty over all things”. in Ch 33:37, it describes how Allah allowed Mohammed to marry his daughter in law; Mohammed was afraid of what people would say, so Allah said: “There was no shame on the Prophet what Allah had ordained for him; and the command of Allah was accomplished”. Mohammed had a total of 13 wives, the youngest being Aisha. She became his wife when she was six years old, but the marriage wasn’t consummated until she was 9. She was considered his favorite wife. in 33:50, Allah grants Mohammed permission to have sex with as many believing women as he chooses, if they offer themselves to him. 33:50:”And a believing woman if she gives herself to the prophet, if the prophet desires to have sex with her, this is a privilege for you, but not for any other believers”. Ch 46:4t “So when you meet those who became infidels, strike the necks until you have made a great slaughter among them. So firmly blind them. Those who were killed for the sake of Allah he will not let their works go astray. He will admit them into the garden…”. Chapter 47:35 speaks about performing jihad, especially when you have the upper hand. “So do not be weak and do not call for peace when you have the upper hand, Allah is with you”. 49:15: “Surely the believers are only those who believe in Allah and his messenger. Then they do not doubt and perform jihad with their money and their lives for the sake of Allah.’ Muslims who make friends with Jews or Christians are either not true Muslims or are hypocrites and liars, and will burn in hell.(58:14) Muslim men can have sex with Muslim women who are married to non-Mulsims (60:10) 61:4: “Surely Allah loves those who engage in war for his sake”.

PART TWO: The Koran teaches that Muslim men may have sexual relations with their child wives even if they have not yet reached the age of menstruation: 61:4: “And for those of your women who despair of menstruation, if you doubt that they may be pregnant, their prescribed waiting time is three months, as well as for those who have not yet begun menstruation. Mohammed committed adultery with a Coptic woman, and Allah told him: 66:1: “Oh you prophet, why do you forbid what Allah has made lawful to you, seeking to please your wives? Indeed, Allah has allowed you to be released from your oaths”. Allah commands Mohammed to perform harsh jihad against all unbelivers 66:9: “Oh you prophet, perform a jihad against the infidels and hypocrites and be harsh against them. And hell will be their abode and evil is their final place.

So in the Koranic verses, adultery, murder, sex with children, waging war against all non-Muslims, dying for the cause of Islam, is ordered by Alllah through his Prophet, Mohammed. How can Muslims be enraged for simply reiterating what is written in their Holy Book?